Champion for Justice Erica Garner Dies at 27

Erica Garner, daughter of Eric Garner, has died at just 27 years old after being in a coma following a massive heart attack.

Garner became a prominent activist following her father’s death. The officer who took Eric Garner’s life, Daniel Pantaleo, is still on duty for NYPD Police.

“When you report this you remember she was human: mother, daughter, sister, aunt. Her heart was bigger than the world. It really really was,” her [Twitter] account said. “She cared when most people wouldn’t have. She was good. She only pursued right, no matter what. No one gave her justice.”

Lauren is the co-founder of Black Fitness Today, the digital magazine dedicated to empowering the black community - mind, body, soul, culture and money. She lives in Tucson, AZ, where she also manages the healthy food blog The Remix with Lauren, her husband and his brain that never stops churning, and their completely lit one-year-old daughter. You can reach her at lauren.bell@blackfitnesstoday.com

Angela Rye Set To Join BET For New Program

It’s about time! We are excited to learn that Angela Rye, Principal and CEO of Impact Strategies, CNN political commentator and NPR political analyst, will be joining forces with BET to deliver a new program, launching this month.

Rye is set to host and executive produce the quarterly news show, which is poised to dig deep into issues and stories affecting black America.

“Working with BET always provides a reminder of why I began to do this work,” Rye said in a statement to Blavity. “It is essential that we have platforms where we can discuss our politics, our challenges, and our culture through our respective lenses. The upcoming special will provide a glimpse of what’s to come with our partnership.”

The first episode of the series is tentatively titled “Angela Rye’s State of the Union,” which will be a primetime rebuttal to President Trump’s State of the Union address airing Wednesday, January 31 at 10PM PT.

Call it what it is…this is that bullshxt,man. That bullshxt that is systematically woven in legislation used to fill for-profit prisons with black men and women. The same bullshxt that justifies over-policing in black neighborhoods even though marijuana use is roughly equal among blacks and whites, yet blacks are 3.73 times as likely to be arrested for marijuana possession (h/t ACLU). And yes, this is that bullshxt that leads to more interactions between blacks and police — some who are racist and some who are just looking for easy targets to meet quotas — and the reality is reckless claims like those recently made by State Rep. Steve Alford (R) of Kansas have no scientific merit and yet are consumed as truth.

How could that be?!

Like my man Joe Maddison “the Black Eagle” of Sirus XMs The Urban View often says: “in America, we are culturally conditioned to believe, that White is superior, Black is inferior, and the manifestation of that cultural conditioning is that Black people are undervalued, underestimated and marginalized. It’s not a racist statement. It’s a fact of life.”

See exhibit A:

State Rep. Steve Alford (R) of Kansas thinks marijuana should be illegal because he said black people are genetically unable to handle its effects. Using the type of racist “logic” commonly heard when “Reefer Madness” was considered a serious documentary.

“What you really need to do is go back in the ’30s, when they outlawed all types of drugs in Kansas [and] across the United States,” Alford said, according to the Garden City Telegram. “One of the reasons why, I hate to say it, was that the African-Americans, they were basically users and they basically responded the worst off to those drugs just because of their character makeup, their genetics and that.”

The Telegram pointed out that Alford’s comments appeared to be based on the theories of Harry Anslinger, the founding commissioner of what was then called the Federal Bureau of Narcotics, which was behind the Marijuana Tax Act of 1937.

“There are 100,000 total marijuana smokers in the U.S., and most are Negroes, Hispanics, Filipinos and entertainers. Their Satanic music, jazz and swing result from marijuana use. This marijuana causes white women to seek sexual relations with Negroes, entertainers and any others.”

“Marijuana is an addictive drug which produces in its users insanity, criminality, and death.”

Although Alford, who represents a district in western Kansas, stood by his remarks when questioned after the meeting, he was unable to cite a specific source for his so-called science to the Telegram. However, he admitted he shouldn’t have singled out African-Americans.

On Monday, Alford denied that his remarks were racist to AP: “To me, that’s neutral. Basically, I got called a racist, which I’m really not, and it’s just the way people — the interpretation of people. To me, I’m trying to look at what’s really the best for Kansas.”

Carl Brewer, a Democratic candidate for governor, said Alford’s comments were inappropriate for a politician in 2018.

“It is hard to believe that in 2018, anyone would support the discredited and racist policies of the Jim Crow-era,” Brewer said in a statement to KSN TV. “No matter one’s feelings on medical marijuana and marijuana legalization, we can all agree that views like those of KS Rep. Alford have no place in our statehouse, in our state or in our country.”

Why Was Essence Magazine Sold to TIME Inc. in the First Place?

Time Inc. is selling Essence Communications Inc. to Essence Ventures LLC, a company launched in 2017 by Shea Moisture founder Richelieu Dennis. As a result, the Essence brand has returned to a 100% black-owned independent company, after 12 years of being owned by Time. via Black Enterprise

In 2015, my wife, Lauren and I served as media for an event chaired by Edward Lewis, Publisher and Co-Founder of Essence Magazine. The event was packed; black excellence and black affluence everywhere. It was the Association of Black Cardiologists’ 6th annual “Spirit of the Heart” Awards held at the famous Cipriani 42nd Street in NYC; I personally, had never seen anything like it.

My wife and I navigated through the crowd and walked up to Mr. Lewis, the last co-founder standing at the time Essence was sold to Time Inc., and introduced ourselves as Black Fitness Today. After the interview, he gave us his business card and asked to send him a copy of our magazine. He also suggested that we read his book, ‘The Man from Essence: Creating a Magazine for Black Women’ and take some of the lessons he learned over the years of running Essence Magazine and apply those same lessons during our journey with Black Fitness Today.

The book was a rollercoaster detailing how Essence almost didn’t get off the ground, to running out of money, to having to pull more investors in like Hugh Hefner (Founder of Playboy), to the mag failing to make a profit for the first seven years, to now serving tens of millions of readers across the globe and creating a community of loyal supporters who show up every year at the Essence Festival. That book provided the insight as to why Lewis sold Essence in the first place.

Why Edward Lewis Sold Essence – In His Words

In the chapter titled “selling in,” Lewis talks “selling in” – a play on “selling out,” something many accused him of doing when agreeing to sell Essence to Time Inc.

I wasn’t worried about the ‘soul’ of Essence. I was worried about its staying power. I wanted to ensure the longevity of Essence Communications as an institution serving the needs of black women. That would preserve its soul. It was becoming clear to me that independent, one- or two-magazine-titled companies were going to have a harder time surviving in the new millennium…The Internet was threatening to turn print on its ear. And there were the ever-escalating production costs that simply made it more expensive for smaller publishing companies.

To ensure the continued existence and growth of Essence it made sense to join with a mighty company that not only desired us, but promised to share with us its considerable resources.

What Time Inc. brought to the table was beyond anything we could ever do alone. [savings in production costs, syndicated research, opinion-poll capabilities, and advertising opportunities]

Excerpts from The Man from Essence: Creating a Magazine for Black Women

The Essence – Time relationship was supposed to be a five-year courtship when Time Inc. purchased 49 percent of Essence in 2000. But in 2005, the courtship turned into a marriage when Time purchased the remaining 51 percent to gain full control.

Much of the beef with Lewis’ move back in 2000 was his failure to bring potential black buyers to the table. But, almost two decades later, the tables have turned and ownership of Essence is back where it belongs in – in black hands.

Black media and black positive representation matters. So learning Essence Magazine is 100% black-owned once again is a breath of fresh air, especially given the sociopolitical climate. The power of ownership has become something even more important in our community, which is yet another reason to celebrate the reclaiming of Essence Magazine.